A decade-long study shows that drinking up to three cups of coffee every day can help you live longer.
Regular drinkers of hot drinks were up to 12 percent less likely to die.
And they were up to a fifth less likely to have heart disease or have a stroke, the results showed.
But experts found that health benefits only come from consuming ground coffee—not instant varieties.
And according to research from nearly 500,000 people, drinking more than three cups a day has no good effect.
Coffee is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world, but previous studies have been conflicting on whether it can benefit or harm health. As well as caffeine, the drink also contains minerals and antioxidants. Some studies have linked it with a reduced risk of cancer, obesity, type 2 diabetes and dementia. However, other studies have pointed to an increased risk of having high blood pressure and dying from heart disease.
The graph shows the risk of dying from all causes, depending on whether study participants consumed coffee (black line), half a cup to three cups per day (blue line) or more than three cups a day (black line). ) did not drink. Researchers found that those who drank between 0.5 and three cups per day by the end of the 11-year study were 12 percent less likely to die than non-coffee drinkers.
Coffee is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world, although previous studies have been conflicting on whether it can benefit or harm health.
As well as caffeine, the drink also contains minerals and antioxidants. Some studies have linked it with a reduced risk of cancer, type 2 diabetes and dementia.
However, others have pointed to an increased risk of having high blood pressure and dying from heart disease.
A new study by a team of British and Hungarian academics shows that the drink does not raise blood pressure and has cardiovascular benefits.
Dr Stephen Peterson, one of the authors from Queen Mary University of London, said the results showed that moderate coffee consumption is ‘not harmful to the heart and may be beneficial’.
“To our knowledge, this is the largest research to date focusing on the cardiovascular effects of coffee consumption,” he said.
The participants were drawn from the UK Biobank, were on average 56 years of age, and did not have heart disease at the start of the study.
The volunteers were followed for 11 years, allowing the experts to analyze differences between the groups.
Among the participants, 22 percent were non-coffee drinkers and 58 percent drank up to three cups a day.
Others admitted to having at least three cups, according to study published in European Journal of Preventive Cardiology,
The results showed that those who drank 0.5-3 cups per day by the end of the study were 12 percent less likely to die than non-coffee drinkers.
Meanwhile, compared to non-coffee drinkers, they were 17 percent less likely to die of heart disease and 21 percent less likely to have a stroke.
And they were less likely to get diabetes than those who drank zero-coffee. Researchers didn’t investigate this, but caffeine is known to suppress appetite, which may lead to lower rates of obesity and related health conditions.
Those who drank more than three cups a day were less likely to have high blood pressure — a concern from previous studies.
But they had similar rates of mortality, heart disease and stroke to non-coffee drinkers, suggesting that the maximum people can consume is three cups per day to reap the health benefits.
Researchers found no increase in the rate of high blood pressure in people who drank coffee daily, allaying concerns that caffeinated drinks trigger the condition.
However, when the group looked at health benefits based on the type of coffee drinkers, about a quarter of the group’s people consumed instant coffee – they experienced no health benefits.
The researchers said this was probably due to differences in the way the coffee was made.
Instant coffee has more caffeine and antioxidants, but it contains twice as much acrylamide — a substance found in some foods that has been linked to an increased risk of cancer and nervous system damage.
The team said that the ‘favourable effect’ of coffee could be explained by changes in the structure of the heart of those who consumed the caffeinated beverage.
They examined available cardiovascular MRI scans for 30,000 participants, and saw signs that the coffee drinkers had healthier hearts.
Those who consumed moderate or high amounts of caffeinated drinks had larger ventricles, meaning they could pump more blood.